The Mashawana brothers, Collen and Cecil, never cease to come up with new ways of assisting the less fortunate and vulnerable. Through the Collen Mashawana Foundation, these two business brothers have built more than 200 houses across the country for people in need, but more specifically those who are regarded as disabled, elderly or poor.
Last Sunday (11 September), the brothers accompanied Limpopo Health MEC Dr Phophi Ramathuba to Mudimeli village, where the MEC checked on the status of a patient she had helped earlier. For a long time, Ms Meida Ramuhala suffered from a condition called mandibular ameloblastoma - a rare, noncancerous (benign) tumour that most often develops in the jaw near the molars.
Ramuhala's tumour started growing in 1999. For more than 20 years, she lived in extreme pain and discomfort as this tumour grew bigger and bigger. Doctors were reluctant to operate on her as they could not see what was inside and, in the meantime, no-one would employ her. MEC Ramathuba decided to intervene last year (2021) and hooked her up with Dr Itani Dikgale, a maxillofacial specialist who, with the help of her entire team of dentists, anaesthetists, nurses and other support staff at the Pietersburg Hospital, successfully removed Ramuhala's tumour.
During Sunday's visit to the Ramuhala family, the entourage was highly impressed by her recovery, but her living conditions left much to be desired. Collen Mashawana did an assessment and had this to say: "I have seen terrible situations, but this one made my heart bleed. As a foundation, we believe that everyone has the right to safe and decent housing. We fully commit ourselves to helping Meida Ramuhala and providing her with adequate housing and the chance to live a normal life. We welcome you, Meida, as you are now a new member of the Collen Mashawana Foundation family," he said.
Mashawana encouraged his current partners and other sponsors to jump on board to help them achieve their goal in restoring Meida's dignity. He said that the house would take seven to eight weeks to complete and that it would be fully furnished on handover.
Ramuhala had no words to describe her excitement on hearing this news, except to express her sincere gratitude.
Dr Ramathuba thanked the foundation and called on the "captains of industry" to join hands in uplifting the lives of the less fortunate.